Abstract
In this paper an age-structured population growth model, based on a fuzzy cellular structure, is proposed. An age-structured population growth model enables a better description of population dynamics. In this paper, the dynamics of a particular bird species is considered. The dynamics is governed by the variation of natality, mortality and emigration rates, which in this work are evaluated using an interval type-2 fuzzy logic system. The use of type-2 fuzzy logic enables handling the effects caused by environment heterogeneity on the population. A set of fuzzy rules, about population growth, are derived from the interpretation of the ecological laws and the bird life cycle. The proposed model is formulated using discrete mathematics within the framework of a fuzzy cellular structure. The fuzzy cellular structure allows us to visualize the evolution of the population's spatial dynamics. The spatial distribution of the population has a deep effect on its dynamics. Moreover, the model enables not only to estimate the percentage of occupation on the cellular space when the species reaches its stable equilibrium level, but also to observe the occupation patterns. (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.